Greed vs Duty: VCIU Member Convicted Of Corruption.

The Specialist Section recently announced the corruption conviction of a 34-Year police detective based at VCIU Isipingo Pound.

The complainant was misled by the Accused that she had to pay him R4000 to have her motor vehicle released. The motor vehicle was in fact cloned, to which he also did not drawn to the complainant’s attention. Once the monies were paid over, the detective then handed her the release order. When she went to identify and take delivery of the motor vehicle, she reported that her tyres and radio were missing.

Regional Magistrate Mrs F. B. Mohammed found the Accused to be a poor witness. His version was riddled with inconsistencies and contradictions elicited during cross examination by the skilled and formidable Specialist Prosecutor Kuveshnie Pillay.

The Accused was sentenced to 6 years direct imprisonment of which half is suspended for a period of 5 years – an effective 3 years in prison.

In sentencing the court had stated that this type of behaviour tarnished the reputation of the SAPS.

The Durban Cluster adopts a zero-tolerance approach to corrupt officials who also contribute to the cycle of crime. In this case, the vehicle was already stolen and cloned, meaning she was a victim twice. The Complainant in the Corruption should have been informed that she bought a stolen vehicle. Not only did she lose the purchase price of the vehicle, but she was also a victim again when the Accused took advantage of her lack of knowledge on police pound processes.

Well done to Prosecutor K Pillay for the excellent prosecution, and well done to the Investigating Officer, W/O Matsena, from the Provincial Anti-Corruption Unit.

#ServeAndProtect #ZeroToleranceToCorruption